My mom has always supported me and has offered me tons of advice through all of the challenge I’ve faced. My dad and brother have supported me since day one as well!
Moving away to college is one of the biggest challenges we take on in our young adult lives. It can be great, but it can also be difficult.
There are so many changes that you make from being on your own for the first time to sharing a tiny dorm room with another person. Throughout all of it you will find you need at least one person who you can lean on to help you through it all; mine was my mom.
No matter what time it was I knew I could text or call her and she would always answer, even if it was something stupid. Looking back now, I cannot help but notice how many things she was right about, and how important it is to remember some of these things.
One of the first problems I faced my freshman year was a roommate problem. Don’t get me wrong, we got a long and everything, we just had different personalities.
After talking with my mom many times about it she finally just told me what I needed to hear: you do not have to be best friends with your freshman roommate. The important thing is that you and your roommate(s) get along.
I struggled with this at first because I had this idea in my head that I needed to be best friends with my roommate, but that is not true.
Another thing my mom, as well as pretty much everyone else, told me was: time is going to fly by and you are going to miss it. Besides mentally singing, “You’re Gonna Miss This” by Trace Atkins, I just ignored it.
Now I am sitting here planning my schedule for the fall of my senior year, wondering where the time has gone. Time really does fly by…enjoy it while it lasts!
When I first started going to school at Winona State I was an education major. However, halfway through my freshman year, I realized that it was not something I wanted to do. There was absolutely nothing wrong with it–it just was not for me.
After what seemed like days and days of stress (pretty sure it was actually two days), I finally called my mom. I beat around the bush because I thought she was going to be mad, but to my surprise she did not care. I believe her reaction was “I do not care what you do, just make sure you are happy.” I think this is really important advice to remember.
Finally, last year I was struggling with a class and I realized that I would not end up with a grade that I wanted. Panicked, I called my mom wondering whether I should risk it or just withdraw from the class. She told me it was up to me but dropping a class is not the end of the world. Sometimes you just have to do what you need to do.
And if I thought dropping the class was what was best for me than that’s what I should do. So, that is what I did. I was so focused on my main goal that I did not realize the stress was not worth it. At the end of the day your health, both mental and physical, are what is most important.
Even though I will never admit it again, moms are almost always right.
